Field of the Disclosure
Aspects of the present disclosure relate to methods for forming improved glass fiber products, and, more particularly, to a method for forming a melt-resistant or otherwise thermally-resistant glass fiber product, and associated apparatus.
Description of Related Art
It may sometimes be desirable for particular glass fiber-based products to exhibit resistance to heat, such as that resulting from an incidental fire, in addition to fire resistance. In some instances, such a glass fiber-based insulation product may have a fire-retardant product applied thereto, post-formation, to provide some fire resistance capabilities therefor. That is, an exemplary as-formed filiform glass fiber-based insulation product may have a surface treatment, for example, a liquid fire retardant, applied thereto in order for the treated product to exhibit at least some fire resistance. Because of the nonporous nature of such filiform glass fibers, such treatments may tend to remain on exposed surfaces of the glass fibers and do not penetrate or become absorbed by the glass fibers or the insulation product itself. However, such glass fiber-based insulation products used, for example, in building construction, may be comprised of filiform glass fibers that may tend to melt in the presence of excess heat, wherein the melted glass fibers may then lose the insulation properties found in the original insulation product. Thus, while the treatment of the as-formed glass fiber-based insulation product may be somewhat effective for fire resistance, particularly with a liquid fire retardant, it may be difficult or otherwise inefficient to achieve an even and consistent fire-resistance treatment of that product, and such treatment may not necessarily render the product thermal/heat resistant. More particularly, the result of some fire resistance treatment processes involving application of a liquid fire-retardant to an as-formed glass fiber-based insulation product may be an uneven or otherwise inconsistent coverage of the fire retardant with respect to the product, with insignificant improvement in thermal/heat resistance characteristics. In those cases, the glass-fiber product may pose a hazard in the event of a fire which the product is intended to retard or otherwise provide some resistance to heat and/or flames. Further, such treatment processes may not necessarily be efficient in terms of applying the fire retardant to the glass fiber-based product, may not include provisions for capturing or recycling excess portions of the fire retardant product, and may not have the capability for preventing or restricting losses of the fire retardant due, for instance, to evaporative processes.
Thus, there exists a need for a process and associated apparatus for evenly and consistently applying a coating, for example a liquid fire retardant coating, to the fibers of a filiform glass fiber-based product such as, for example, a glass fiber-based insulation product. In some instances, it may be desirable to form an integral glass fiber product having enhanced characteristics and physical properties, compared to an existing glass fiber product, while also providing an enhanced level of heat and/or fire resistance (i.e., no or limited melting) and effectively maintaining its original insulation properties. It may also be desirable, in some instances, to have a glass fiber-based product formation process with the capability of capturing excess fire retardant and recycling the captured excess in subsequent glass fiber product manufacturing cycles, whether the excess is captured in a liquid form or in other forms, such as vapors.